Monday, November 16, 2015

The collectibles market can be finicky. People will often tell you to buy what you love. This is so you won't be disappointed if the value of your collectible goes down. Most people assume that over time the value of a collectible will always goes up. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. The one thing that will usually guarantee rising value is the release of the latest episode of a franchised movie. Star Wars is the prime example.The Early Bird
Certificate Package was the first Kenner Star Wars action figure item. It was also the first major success story in movie toy retailing. No one thought Star Wars would be the major hit. When Kenner signed on to be the toy maker for the film, they had no idea that the movie would be so successful. When they realized there was a huge demand for action figures, they did not want to miss the opportunity to market to children at Christmas time. Because they had no time to create the action figure line before Christmas, they sold an empty box with a display stand featuring all of the characters. The children would fill out the certificate with their name and address, wait months, and then the action figures would be mailed to them. This
certificate package has long been popular with collectors. Many were damaged or
destroyed when they were first opened as it is essentially an empty box and
those that remain are very popular. The display headers that sell for the
highest prices remain in their envelopes. In the retail market,
these stands vary in price depending on the grade as well as which elements are
present. With the release of the new Star Wars movie, prices for the Early Bird Certificate package continue to rise today.

Thursday, July 9, 2015

It's been a while since I've posted but I'm back! I've been publishing in other places recently and have had a lot of fun with it.
For about six years now I've been working for an appraisal company that primarily focuses on "loss" appraisals. This means that fires, floods, hurricanes, tornados, and theft of art items have become something I think about and talk about every day. One question I am frequently asked is "how do I replace this? There is nothing out there like it." Now, you have an answer.Read this article from Property Casualty 360. When you are finished with that, you may want to follow it up with this.

Finally, in 2014 the Claims Journal published one of my articles which focused on stolen art, the recovery of stolen art, and how to protect yourself financially. You can find that article here.

ABOUT THE APPRAISER

Christian Trabue is an art, antiques, and collectibles appraiser and a member of the Appraisers Association of America. She lives and works in Kentucky but completes appraisals in other parts of the country as well. Ms. Trabue completed her undergraduate degree in art history at Centre College, attended the University of Louisville for her graduate work in art history and, received a certificate in Personal Property Appraisal from New York University. She is a member of the Appraisers Association of America (AAA) and has taken and passed the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP). In January of 2009 she joined Enservio Select as a fine art and antiques appraiser.